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Struggling U.S. agriculture exports to Japan, which have cost Montana farmers millions in sales since the start of 2019, are a few months away from being resolved, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer testified Tuesday. Lighthizer, taking questions from Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., before the Senate Finance Committee, said his office was working with Japan to smooth out tariff troubles brought about by the United States’ 2017 exit from the multinational Trans-Pacific Partnership. Nations who stuck with the U.S.-initiated TPP are seeing tariff reductions in Japan that the United States isn’t. Montana wheat producers expect their 2019 trade losses in Japan

Montana’s congressional delegation made a successful bipartisan push Wednesday to advance legislation that would, for the first time, federally recognize the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians. According to a press release sent to MTN News, Sens. Steve Daines and Jon Tester have stapled their tribal recognition bill as an amendment to must-pass defense spending legislation in the U.S. Senate. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), to which the recognition bill has been attached, must pass Congress annually to determine national defense appropriations. At this point, the logistics would safeguard the recognition bill’s passage. While the Little Shell Tribe has

Lawmakers pressed the Trump administration on Wednesday to respond with urgency in addressing violence against Native American women and children after they say two officials arrived at a key U.S. Senate hearing unprepared to take concrete positions on a slate of legislation. The U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs held the hearing in Washington to review five bipartisan measures aimed at tackling domestic violence, homicides and disappearances on tribal lands. The hearing followed recent pledges among Justice and Interior department officials to address gender violence in tribal communities as concerns mount over high rates of victimization. It also came amid

Bowing to pressure from Congress and communities across the country, the Trump Administration announced Wednesday that it will not close or transfer any of the Job Corps Centers operated by the U.S. Forest Service, including Montana’s Trapper Creek and Anaconda centers. “Following a robust engagement with stakeholders and members of Congress regarding the future of the USFS Job Corps centers, USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) has notified DOL (Department of Labor) that the USFS will evaluate the feedback while reviewing its role in Job Corps management and operation,” said a joint statement from the two agencies released late Wednesday. For

“All in for Senator Steve Daines as he proposes an Amendment for a strong BAN on burning our American Flag,” Trump tweeted Saturday morning. “A no brainer!” Daines reintroduced the controversial proposal in a press release Friday, on Flag Day. “Our United States flag is a timeless symbol of liberty that tells the story of America, the story of our enduring pursuit of freedom,” Daines said. “Remembering the sacrifices of all who carried its colors into battle, our nation should always render the flag the honor and dignity it is due,” he continued. The wording itself is short and straightforward: “The Congress

Daines introduced his constitutional amendment to prohibit burning of the American flag as America celebrates Flag Day. “Our United States flag is a timeless symbol of liberty that tells the story of America, the story of our enduring pursuit of freedom,” Daines said in a press release Friday. “Remembering the sacrifices of all who carried its colors into battle, our nation should always render the flag the honor and dignity it is due.” The Montana Republican has led the way for the movement to prohibit flag burning via a constitutional amendment. Last year on Flag Day, Daines highlighted his constitutional amendment on